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. 2023 Jul 24;12(14):2748.
doi: 10.3390/plants12142748.

Remnants from the Past: From an 18th Century Manuscript to 21st Century Ethnobotany in Valle Imagna (Bergamo, Italy)

Fabrizia Milani  1   2 , Martina Bottoni  1   2 , Laura Bardelli  1   2 , Lorenzo Colombo  1   2 , Paola Sira Colombo  1   2 , Piero Bruschi  3 , Claudia Giuliani  1   2 , Gelsomina Fico  1   2
Affiliations

Remnants from the Past: From an 18th Century Manuscript to 21st Century Ethnobotany in Valle Imagna (Bergamo, Italy)

Fabrizia Milani et al. Plants (Basel). .

Abstract

Background: This project originated from the study of an 18th century manuscript found in Valle Imagna (Bergamo, Italy) which contains 200 plant-based medicinal remedies. A first comparison with published books concerning 20th century folk medicine in the Valley led to the designing of an ethnobotanical investigation, aimed at making a thorough comparison between past and current phytotherapy knowledge in this territory.

Methods: The field investigation was conducted through semi-structured interviews. All data collected was entered in a database and subsequently processed. A diachronic comparison between the field results, the manuscript, and a 20th century book was then performed.

Results: A total of 109 interviews were conducted and the use of 103 medicinal plants, belonging to 46 families, was noted. A decrease in number of plant taxa and uses was observed over time, with only 42 taxa and 34 uses reported in the manuscript being currently known by the people of the valley. A thorough comparison with the remedies in the manuscript highlighted similar recipes for 12 species. Specifically, the use of agrimony in Valle Imagna for the treatment of deep wounds calls back to an ancient remedy against leg ulcers based on this species.

Conclusions: The preliminary results of this study allow us to outline the partial passage through time fragments of ancient plant-based remedies once used in the investigated area.

Keywords: diachronic comparison; ethnobotanical investigation; historical sources; medicinal plants.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Pages taken from the 18th century manuscript: (a) remedies against oropharyngeal problems; (b) remedies against musculoskeletal and oropharyngeal disorders.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Categories of use (pathologies treated) in Valle Imagna. According to the number of citations (#citations) and number of species (#species).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Some herbal preparations observed during the field work: (a) dried herbal teas of some of the most cited species, such as M. sylvestris and T. cordata; (b) decoction of aerial parts of A. eupatoria; (c) ointment obtained mixing extra virgin olive oil and bee wax; (d) decoction of rosehips (R. canina).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Venn diagrams comparing taxa (A) and uses (B) in the three data sources. JI = corrected Jaccard Index.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Distribution of the use categories in the three data sources.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Categories of use for the 10 most cited species in the field investigation: comparison between the three data sources. CS = Circulatory system disorders; DIG = Digestive tract disorders; EAR = Afflictions of the ear; FE = Fever; GC = General condition; GYN = Gynaecological disorders, obstetric, and puerperal problems; MSK = Musculoskeletal system disorders and traumas; NS = Nervous system disorders; OR = Oropharyngeal cavity affections; OPT = Ophthalmic ailments; RES = Respiratory tract infections; UR = Urinary tract disorders; SK = Skin diseases and traumas; SL = Slimming. In brackets: number of informants citing the species. Black: the use has been cited during the interviews and is reported in the two books; orange: the use has been cited during the interviews but is not present in the two books; blue: the use has been cited during the interviews and is reported in Maconi; violet: the use has been cited during the interviews and is reported in the manuscript; green: the use is reported only in Maconi; red: the use is reported only in the manuscript; grey: the use is reported both in Maconi and the manuscript. #UScostant = number of uses surviving through the time; #USnew = number of uses recently appeared.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Valle Imagna is located in the province of Bergamo, Lombardy region, Northern Italy. Map modified from the original free maps at https://d-maps.com/carte.php?num_car=284951&lang=it (accessed on 14 July 2023), https://d-maps.com/carte.php?num_car=22383&lang=it (accessed on 14 July 2023), and https://d-maps.com/carte.php?num_car=213806&lang=it, (accessed on 14 July 2023).
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